Melbourne 2019 - Day 1 - Kazza's Australian Holidays

Earlier in the year Hannah and I had discussed going to see Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in Melbourne. We ummed and ahhed and eventually decided on a date that would work for all of us. So Friday 8 November we headed off. Stu and I took a half day and flew down, while Hannah and Rita drove down.

War Memorial lawn setup for Remembrance Day

We flew Virgin because it was about half the price of Qantas. So no Qantas lounge for us.

Virgin Australia Boeing 737-800 VH-VOQ at Canberra Airport

Royal Australian Air Force Dassault Falcon 7X A56-001 at Canberra Airport

A350s are enormous next to 737s!

Qatar Airbus A350-1041 A7-ANG at Canberra Airport

There were clouds over Canberra so the view disappeared pretty quickly. Super sad times, as I love the flight from Canberra to Melbourne which curves around the north of Canberra and normally gives an awesome view of the city.

Canberra from the plane

Belconnen town centre

Rainbow over the ACT

Snackages on the plane

There was rain about in Melbourne but the air was quite clear, and there were rainbows here too.

Docklands from the Sky Bus

Melbourne under a rainbow

We caught the Sky Bus into the city. It's getting fairly expensive these days - $75 for the two of us for return ticket. Still quite a bit cheaper than a taxi though. Went across the road and took a tram all the way along Burke Street to our hotel.

Kaz and Stu on a tram

We stayed at the Rydges, which was quite nice, except for the very soft bed.

Our room at Rydges

Tea and coffee making facilities in our room at Rydges

We had a view to the north.

View from our hotel room

The sweetie taking a selfie

View from our hotel room

This apartment building had floor to ceiling windows, which meant you could see straight into everyone's messy apartments.

View from our hotel room

Building with floor to ceiling windows opposite the hotel

You could see everything inside these apartments

We could just see Her Majesty's Theatre, which was playing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Her Majesty's Theatre

After we'd got settled we went out to find a pub and some dinner. The first pub on the corner here was too noisy and we couldn't find a table anyway, so we kept going.

Victorian Parliament House

Around the corner was the Princess Theatre, where Harry Potter was playing.

Entrance to Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the Princess Theatre

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the Princess Theatre

Stu being sorted

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory being shown at Her Majesty's Theatre

Around the corner again and walked half way through Chinatown.

Building in Chinatown

Half way along Chinatown was the Exford Hotel, which had a nice bar upstairs, with comfy chairs available and the music was good and not toooo loud, so we had a couple of beers there (and we just beat the rain too - it poured while we were inside).

Stu at the bar in the Exford Hotel

After drinks we headed back out to find somewhere for dinner, walking back through Chinatown and past the hotel.

Middle entrance of Chinatown looking east

Sunset shining through Chinatown

Rydges Hotel

We ended up at Rice Paper Scissors, recommended by Shane at work. When we got there they were telling the people in front of us it would be an hour and a half wait to go inside and our hearts sank somewhat. But then they said we could sit outside right now and we were like, sold! We're from Canberra, we don't mind the cold (it was somewhat cold that night and a bit rainy but the rain had stopped and there was a gas heater anyway). It was awesome!! Really delicious food. I think one of the dishes (maybe the crab) was a tad spicy for me, but it was all really good.